Pure Oil Gas Station c. 1931

C.A. Petersen, regarded as the father of modern service station architecture, created his most famous “Cottage Style” design for the Pure Oil Company in 1927. The company’s signs proudly proclaimed, “Be Sure With Pure.” Only a handful of these stations remain nationwide. In 1958, Marion Kjellenberg (Shelly), publisher of the local newspaper, bought the station and had it moved to this location, saving it from demolition. It originally stood at the northwest corner of Cooper and Montgomery Roads. The building represents both a vanishing architectural style and a way of life.